How dare I switch up pancake Sunday and make blueberry muffins! I’m such a rebel! To be fair, these actually tasted like pancakes in muffin form with a sweet crumble topping. I decided to go halfsies on the flour and add whole wheat. It gave a much denser batter that required more liquid. That’s just me striving to make everything healthier. You can certainly sub the flour. I am sure they would have been lighter and fluffier had I stuck with all purpose flour but we gobbled these right up regardless! They tasted great by our standards. We like our pancakes and muffins HEARTY. Biting in and hitting a fresh juicy baked blueberry made these a hit with me!

My friends wanted the recipe the other day when they saw my Instagram post. I was hoping to make them a few more times before I shared, uh cuz I was just playing around. But that may never happen, so oh what the heck… I will tell you what I did, and then share my notes.

Let’s talk about the avocado for a second… think of it as an oil or butter substitute. It’s a healthier fat and a whole food. It’s a better-for-you-ingredient and it didn’t even turn my final product green nor did it taste like guacamole *wink*. You don’t taste the avocado at all. I have seen internet pics of avocado blueberry muffins that do indeed look green. Fancy lighting? Photoshop? It could be that I used whole wheat flour which absorbed too much liquid? I don’t know. Baking is not my expertise… I have been seeing versions of these around the interwebs and I just wanted to try. So I did. Here is my recipe:

Ok, I lied… first you need to watch this video.

I don’t think I can ever eat another blueberry without thinking of this poor sweet child! Blueberries, blueberries!!!

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a muffin tin with 12 paper liners

Using a fork, blend crumb topping ingredients until well mixed and crumbly. Keep cold in the fridge until ready

In the bowl of your food processor, add the avocado, flax egg, vanilla, sugars, almond milk and soy yogurt. Give it a whiz until well blended. Transfer to a larger bowl.

In another bowl, add flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt, blend well with a whisk and add or sift into the wet ingredients. Only stirring to combine. Do not over stir. Gently fold in the blueberries.

Bake for 20 minutes or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let slightly cool.

Best enjoyed warm

*Notes* I have been using black salt in my recipes where an egg flavor might be present such as pancakes or omelets, quiche, french toast, etc… You can certainly sub regular salt. I try to cut sugar whenever possible so I subbed raw stevia for half. You can use all brown sugar or split half brown and half organic sugar. You can even add 1/4 cup MORE organic sugar to increase the sweetness. I didn’t want these to be too sweet. You shouldn’t use all stevia by itself because baking requires some moisture from the sugar.

If using all purpose flour instead of whole wheat flour, you may not need to add almond milk. Or just try 1/4 cup because most of the recipes I have seen that were similar, noted 8 oz yogurt. I only had a 6 oz container. So I was already short “liquid” so 1/2 cup almond milk worked for me. My batter was VERY thick. I could have used more liquid. So this may be a recipe in progress, playing with the liquid, but if you make this exactly like I did, it should come out great. Just remember to adjust the sweetener if you want the final product more dessert like. Or follow my directions for a slightly sweet breakfast muffin. Don’t forget there is a sweet topping that adds to it.

Pumpkins are in season… along with the Flu. I think nature is trying to tell us something. EAT PUMPKIN. Don’t forget the pumpkin seeds! Seeds are full of Zinc that not only heal and clear your skin, it vamps up your immune system. The Vitamin A in pumpkin is a huge immune booster. Now, loading pumpkin with sugar and dairy is going to have the opposite effect. Choose wisely.

I just love Chia pudding, and this recipe is really just a twist on that for this time of year. I would say that this is more for superfood enthusiasts, but my 5 year old seems to really like it. If you are thinking more of a sweet dessert, you will have to add more dates or other sweetener of your choice. We eat this for breakfast so I don’t prefer it that sweet.

With the recent shortage on Chia Seeds. I am not sure I should be sharing this recipe. Next it will be Cashews and Quinoa… other staples of my vegan diet. I totally saw this coming! I hope farmers take notice and shift their crops. We want more real food! Wouldn’t that be awesome?! Dairy and meat consumption has declined recently and thankfully, but if you still partake of meat and eat dairy, leave my Chia alone!

Oh, I am only kidding….

Or am I?

Now, when you make this pudding, don’t be scared that it looks a little like Dijon mustard. Lol. I probably shouldn’t of told you that. Either way, vitamins and minerals and complete protein are yours! Pumpkin and Chia are two superfoods that you want to consume.

You can top this pudding with raw Pepita (pumpkin seeds) for a higher immune boosting experience, or top with more Chia Seeds, Nutmeg or Cinnamon.

Pumpkin Pie Chia Pudding

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons of Chia Seeds

3/4 Cup water

1/3 Cup Cashews

1 Cup Pureed Organic Pumpkin

3 Medjool Dates, soaked and pitted (see directions)

3/4 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/4 – 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Dash of Sea Salt

Directions

Soak the Chia seeds in water for about 15 minutes. Soak your dates overnight… just kidding. Well, you can, but lets be real. Here is the fast route… I like to heat up water in my tea kettle until very warm, not boiling, and pour over the dates in a Pyrex or other glass bowl. Soak these for 15 minutes while the Chia seeds are soaking. Slice open the drained dates and pit (much easier when soft)

There’s a fun new product out there called The Vegg. Have you heard of it? It’s Vegan egg yolk!!!I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. The simple ingredients that make up The Vegg are also low-fat-plant-based-diet approved! When I got my hands on the new Vegg I wanted to try to re-create the toughest recipe I could think of. Irma’s pancakes. Or what I like to call Irma’s pan-crepes.

Sweet, sweet Irma. Everyone should be so lucky to have an Irma in their life! Imagine having a high school best friend and always hanging out at their house after school. Your best friend’s mom becomes like your second mom and she is super cute, super sweet, loving, kind and nurturing. But one other thing, she has a strong and adorable Peruvian accent which makes it all a bit more interesting. It’s a small language barrier, because you don’t speak that language! However, as you know, there just happens to be couple of languages that we ALL speak… Love and Food!

The first thing Irma will do is offer you something to eat. Scratch that, she will insist that you sit down eat something and she will go right into that kitchen of hers and cook you up something great! This is her love language. And this, you just have to accept. It’s certainly not hard to do. YUM!

It didn’t matter back then if it was vegan or not. It was filled with the intention of love and generosity and that’s all that mattered.

Because we didn’t know.

Now we do.

Anyway, this is my mom’s story. She grew up spending a lot of time over at her best friend Helen’s house and Helen’s wonderful mom Irma is like her second mom. Naturally, being related in all of this, Irma (Helen too) has known me since I was born! I have experienced first hand what has come to be an adopted tradition in our home. Irma’s pancakes. This is what my mom likes to call them.

Although, they are not pancakes. They are not an omelet either. And they are not really crepes. Think combination. Think eggy pancakes crepes. Think different and delicious!

The original Irma’s pancakes are made using mostly eggs, a tiny bit of flour, water and vanilla, sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with love. How in the hell do you veganize that!?! Needless to say, I hadn’t made these in a long long time. I thought these were history… until The Vegg happened.

The Vegg is essential for us vegan breakfast lovers! In my best Justin Timberlake… They’re bringing French toast back! There are so many fun things to make: scrambled eggs, hollandaise sauce, omelets, pancakes, quiche, eggs sunny side up. Yes, you read right. It’s really wild! Potato salad, egg salad, etc, etc… virtually any dish in which eggs were once required but you know better so you haven’t had them in a long time. There are endless creations to be made, and if you followThe Vegg on Facebook, you will be up to date with more fun recipes and great information.

The Vegg did not disappoint. In fact, my list is long of all the recipes I want to try with The Vegg. You will definitely see more of this product used in recipes on my blog. Better stock up!

I just hope Irma will be flattered to know that we love her pancakes so! She probably already does. I just truly hope she won’t mind that I veganized them. I know that it may be difficult for her generation to understand why I would want to and I don’t really expect her to grasp it at this point, but I know that her loving heart would agree that kindness to animals and planet and the absolute best thing for our health is to bring these up to date.

The next update will be a gluten-free version. My mom does much better on a gluten free diet, so you know I will tackle that next. I had to pick one challenge at a time here. This was enough for now. And I am happy to report, I rocked it! Thanks toThe Vegg!

Premix The Vegg according to package directions, but use plain almond milk in place of water.

Take the 1/2 Cup of The Vegg mixture and add it to a bowl, then add the remaining ingredients: flour, water, vanilla and black salt. Blend with a whisk until smooth or throw everything into your Vitamix. It works either way.

Pour this mixture into a container with a handle and spout such as a Pyrex measuring cup and refrigerate this mixture for 30 minutes.

Pre-heat an 8 inch non-stick skillet on medium-low heat.

Very lightly, spray the pan with cooking spray and pour a good grapefruit size portion of batter into the center of the pan (photos below). The trick is to get the right thickness. These are thicker than a crepe but not as thick as an omelet. You may have to play with it and you might even screw up the first one. Let’s hope not. After pouring in the batter, pick up the pan and rotate with your wrist to evenly distribute the batter to cover the entire bottom of the pan, just like you would if making a crepe or an omelet.

Then wait…..These take a bit to cook and you will see them start to shrink a bit, the edges will start to lift and the center will bubble a bit, and then you can flip it, BUT use your hands… that’s right, and do it fast, cuz these suckers are hot! I used a toothpick to delicately help me lift the edge a bit more, then I grabbed it with my fingertips using both hands and quickly flipped it over, you will see it bubble again. No need to cook this side long at all, maybe 30 seconds. Then gently fold over one side toward the middle and flip again to finish. Move the finished pan-crepe to a plate and use a lid to keep it warm or a warming drawer etc… while you make your next one.

When all of the pan-crepes are finished being created, you will probably want to reheat them slightly, sprinkle with powder sugar and serve. Don’t forget the side of fruit!

Note* You simply cannot make this recipe without The Vegg and the black salt. This gives it the egg like flavor and color. You may even want to use more black salt than I suggest. It’s all personal preference!

This recipe makes 8.

Enjoy!

~The Karmatarian

PS. I would love to hear about your family traditions! What is a family recipe that you have veganized or would love to try? Maybe it’s one that could really use The Vegg?

I can’t believe that I have been using Chia seeds as long as I have and haven’t run across a recipe like this until now! I found a great breakfast blueberry chia pudding recipe by Brendan Frazier posted on One Green Planet that I LOVE! I slightly adapted the recipe to make it quicker and I will be adding this baby to my recipe rotation. The pudding base is amazing on it’s own and will be used as the base for many different flavors that I have in mind to experiment with! This is fast and easy. I know you will love it too!

Although nothing new… yet still new to many… this is for my friends who may not have discovered the wonders of the Chia seed.

Chia seeds absorb 9 times their weight in water and when soaked create a tasteless gel that can help to keep you more hydrated

Chia gel is 90% soluble fiber allowing a slow release of carbs into the body. Great for controlling sugar levels (diabetics) and great for keeping you feeling full and controlling your appetite!

Chia seeds have twice the protein of any other grain or seed and 5 times the Calcium of cow’s milk. They contain Boron which helps absorb this Calcium

Essential fatty acids, Omega 3 and 6

Chia gel can be used for many things including smoothies, puddings, desserts and as chia “eggs” (egg replacer)

Lets not over look dates which are used in this recipe as our sweetener. Dates are a powerhouse of nutrition as well. Read more about dates here.

This Chia pudding recipe is quick, nutritious and a must try!

What You’ll Need

2 Tbs Chia seeds… white or dark seeds

3/4 Cup Water

1/3 Cup Cashews

3 Medjool Dates soaked and pitted

Pinch of Cinnamon

Pinch of Sea Salt

1/3 Cup of Fresh or Frozen Blueberries plus more for garnish

This is makes 1 large serving or 2 smaller servings

Directions

Soak Chia seeds in 3/4 Cup water for 15 minutes. At the same time soak dates in very warm water for 15 minutes. When dates are finished soaking, slice in half and remove pits. In a blender, combine everything except blueberries. Blend until smooth. Add blueberries and blend again, top with blueberries and dig in!

*Notes* Try this pudding before adding blueberries! You may love it plain and simply want to add your fruit on top. This is the base I refer to above that you can add many different flavors to. Experiment and have fun!

If you have a Vitamix, you can enjoy warm pudding straight from the machine…. Mmmm, I feel so lucky! I put frozen blueberries on top of my warm pudding and it was heavenly. Or if you don’t want it warm and it got a bit too warm for you in your Vitamix, place it in the fridge for a bit before serving.

I would love to know some of your favorite ways to use chia seeds and also your favorite pudding recipes and creations! Please share!

Treat yourself. You deserve it!

Wedding season is in full swing and mama’s been working hard. Hair styling can be downright physically exhausting! Missing my son over the weekend, I wanted to treat us to something yummy on Monday, which was to be like our Sunday. Relaxed and lazy. I threw out some pancake flavors like blueberry and cinnamon pecan but he was not hearing it. I should have known he’d request the dreaded C word… CHOCOLATE. He reminds me of the Snipe, Kevin from the movie “UP” who’s nuts about chocolate. We watched this movie together on our lazy day. So stinkin’ cute… and how fitting, as my three year old freaks for chocolate. It’s a scary treat because chocolate tends to make him E-V-I-L! Oh, he will tell you this, with a giggle if you ask him. However, I’ve noticed that vegan chocolate seems to bring out more manageable behavior than say M & M’s which my very loving, but non-vegan family members tend to slip him from time to time.

It’s tough being a mom, my heart breaks when I have to deny my cutie of his favorite treat 99% of the time. But I must. For the sake of my sanity.

So Mommy Caved! Chocolate it is…

I take pride in the fact that I made this a bit healthier using multi-grain pancake mix. Chia seeds are an excellent egg replacer plus fiber, hydration and 5 times the calcium of milk. Yep, you heard right. Although the Chia seeds don’t steal the show here, they are barely noticeable, really. The pancakes themselves are no biggie either. It’s the coconut cream sauce! I must tell you about this Amazing versatile treat! Coconut cream is another healthy addition to this breakfast. Don’t freak. Coconut cream does have saturated fat but it’s a healthy fat which your body can turn to energy very quickly. It will not clog your arteries like animal fat. It will not raise your blood cholesterol and it actually helps you loose weight. It speeds up your metabolism and helps in the bowel function department. It also helps to boost your immune system against many diseases and fight cancer and viruses due to it’s high Lauric Acid content, a property found in human breast milk. We can’t say the same great things about dairy… so whats the worry?

Directions

Place the can of coconut milk into the freezer first. Heat your griddle. Put the pancake mix and baking powder into a bowl and whisk to blend together. In a small bowl, add 1 Tbs Chia seeds to 3 Tbs water and stir and let sit for a minute. Stir again. Let sit for another minute. Let it get nice and gelatinous. This will act as the egg replacer. Add the chia egg to the non-dairy milk in another large bowl and whisk until everything is well blended. Next add the dry pancake mix to the wet ingredients and whisk to blend well. Fold in the Chocolate Chips. When your griddle is hot and ready. Make your pancakes!

Note* I am not a pancake professional! I don’t even want to tell you how to go about it. Pancakes are too close to baking and baking and I have unresolved issues. I do my best, but usually screw up the first few cakes due to adjusting the heat for the pan. If your vegan pancakes are not cooking all the way through or seeming flat or too wet, add more baking powder, or dry mix which works for me.

When your cakes are stacked, keep them warm while you prepare your cream sauce. Take out the can of coconut milk from the freezer, open and scoop off the top cream that has risen to the top of the can and solidified a bit. It should be about a 1/2 Cup. Add this to a mixing bowl and add the sugar, cacao powder and vanilla and with an electric hand mixer, beat on a high speed until well blended and creamy. Since it won’t be in the freezer that long while you prepare your pancakes, you should end up with a creamy/thick sauce that you can serve over your pancakes instead of syrup. The hot cakes will melt the sauce even more… Mmmm!

The versatility comes into play with the left over cream. Place in a small container and store in the refrigerator. The longer it refrigerates the thicker it becomes and the the flavors blend together. This makes a fantastic, frosting or whip cream replacement. I ate the rest of my chocolate whip cream with strawberries the next day! Be creative and be grateful that we don’t need the dreaded dairy to enjoy an amazing dessert!!!!

You can always prepare your Coconut Chocolate Cream in advance and let is sit out a while to soften or warm it up a bit if you like.

You can also make this coconut cream plain without the chocolate to replace whip cream. Just use the vanilla and sugar. I have also meant to experiment with organic powdered sugar for an even smoother outcome but I haven’t done this yet…. maybe I’ll go do it right now!

Enjoy this clip from the movie “Up”

Damnit Disney… for making me cry. The best message: Ellie to Carl~ Thanks for the Adventure. Now go have a new one! Awwwwwwww

And a few of my favorite “Up” movie lines ~

Ellie: ” You know him. Charles Muntz. When I get big, I’m going where he’s going. South America… It’s like America… but South”!

Russell: “This is fun already isn’t it? By the time we get there, you are gonna feel SO assisted”

Carl: “if you don’t hurry up the Tigers will eat you” Russell: “Damn those Tigers in South America”

Dug: “Oh yes, oh yes, since I have said that I can see how you would think that”

So enjoy and remember… “A wilderness explorer is a friend to all, be a plant or fish or tiny mole!”